"We are grateful for all of Damien's efforts on behalf of Liverpool and wish him all the best for the future."

Liverpool Chairman Tom Werner added:

"The Club needs to move forward and we now have a huge game on Saturday. It is important that everyone joins us in supporting the manager and gets behind Kenny and the team and focuses on a strong finish to the season."

Damien Comolli commented:

"I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to work at Liverpool and am happy to move on from the Club and back to France for family reasons. I wish the Club all the best for the future."

Comolli's departure could be a double-edged sword for Dalglish:

* He may now be given another season to see if he can move the club forward without Comolli's interference.

* FSG may [erroneously] believe that Liverpool's poor performance is down to Comolli, which would buy Dalglish more time, or:

* They may be clearing the decks for a new manager. Many top-class managers prefer not to work with a Director of Football, so if a new manager has been chosen, he may have stipulated that Comolli has to go.

I never believed the Director of Football structure would work at Liverpool, especially with a defiantly old-school manager like Dalglish at the helm.

Comolli will now become Dalglish's scapegoat, and fans will inevitably blame him for the club's failings this season. However, the Frenchman had no input into training, tactics, formations, player motivation or indeed any aspect of team affairs, so blaming him for Liverpool's league failure this season would be wrong (IMO).

Read More From L-Kop

138 comments:

was he fired?sky were peddling the 'family reasons' but why walk out 2 days before a semi final at wembely.i reckon he's being used as a scapegoat for our crap signings.tom werner has urged everyone to get behind kenny,at least we know the owners are still alive.

The first important decision by our Principal Owner John W. Henry and Chairman Thomas Werner. I am smelling are more such important decisions to follow! That shows their pure determination to get things finally right and transform the fortunes of our beloved club!

I dont care if he left for family reasons or he was axed, the good thing is that hes gone finally, and hopefully kenny to follow him soon with his stars, just hope this is a good sign of improvement for next season we really need to sack many players and the manager and start over again and this time no stupid signings, Id sack kenny even if we win the fa cup, that might sound harsh but everybody can see we've got no future under him, he should leave for the best of this club he should understand this as many fans should as well, no place for emotions we need to be cool headed and look to the future a future of success no more failure.

It clearly proves with the departure of Comolli that the owners are not satisfied with the signings made. If Liverpool fails to win the following matches, I think Dalglish's job also will be under threat. This season is catastrophic in spite of winning the leaague cup. In order to be successful, it is important to SCORE goals in which Liverpool failed terribly. I hope next season a new prolific striker may join the club.

He has become a sole target for all the kenny's dud signings. Everyone knows that only suarez was his bye for whom negotiations were ongoing when kenny was appointed. As arrogant a man kenny is, i dont think he would hav let comolli buy any other players. He paid the price for being too soft.Moreover tom werner asking everyone to get behind kenny clearly shows that they know lots of fans, expect the few deluded disciple of kenny, are against him and want him to step down. It is imminent that kenny will be sacked bar some miracle. He is not on the list only because it is difficult to find right manager right now and also because the huge few games are ahead.

The first important decision by our Principal Owner John W. Henry and Chairman Thomas Werner. I am smelling are more such important decisions to follow! That shows their pure determination to get things finally right and transform the fortunes of our beloved club!

The first important decision by our Principal Owner John W. Henry and Chairman Thomas Werner. I am smelling are more such important decisions to follow! That shows their pure determination to get things finally right and transform the fortunes of our beloved club!

At least the owners actually were smart enough to admit their mistake and get rid of como. I dont understand why alot of fans believe he is useless and the club have to spent vast sums before they realise themselves. Anyway thats one down and hopefully foolgish is next. I still say LFC wont win the FA cup. Alot seem to be banking we'll do the cup double. Will you still want Foolgish if he gets knocked out or loses the final?

henry and werner mean business.you could see that the way spoke after the carling cup final,a top 4 spot is what they want to see as a result for their investment.they may not be lifelong supporters but it can't be difficult for them to see how poor this season has been and although i don't think everything is commoli's fault,it is good to see them reacting.commoli may be responsible for recruitment but he WAS NOT responsible for team selection and tactics and constant chopping and changing of the side week in and week out.

it is a strange one this as my questions are; was it commolli that signed the players?? did kenny ever not want certain players but got them anyway? these are questions we will probably never know as KD never talks about signings or the ongiongs within the club, but this signalls to me either KD knows he is going and another manager has been selected and tom wearner has been political with the backing of KD before the semi finals or Dalglish has won some sort of battle and FSG are going to back him becuase somewhere along the line he was right in a way?? If FSG are going to give KD another season then the question must be, was it Comolli and not KD who spent all the money? or was commolli interfering in a way and has been found wanting or it may just be that he has just truly left for family reasons. we will know this will not be true if he has found another job in a couple of months!!!

I don't know who signs the players at Liverpool but I believe that it has to be the manager

Werner and Henry said that signings would be made by committee, Comolli said that Dalglish had final say

This looks like Comolli knew he was in trouble over transfers and walked before he was shoved

We can peddle conspiracies here if we want, but maybe the most glaringly obvious possibility is the right one - Comolli had ultimate control over transfers and the Carroll signing for 35 MILLION killed any trust the owners had in him

They must have thought Comolli was signing a player equivalent to Lebron James

i wonder if that is it, not the type of players but how much he spent. does commolli have control of the budget? if so you can understand if he has used it all up. to be fair the money spent was alot on the likes of downing and carroll but i thought the carroll signing was all to do with torres fee?? It will be interesting to see what happends in the future. no doubt if it is the start of a manager change then i think it will start to come out, especially if the semi final does not go our way. you never know they may be givig KD the chance in the FA Cup and once it has gone he steps down mutually and goes up stairs with his dignity in tact?? who knows!! i wish i did.

Forget about Comolli leaving or being sacked. It is obvious many on here are fans of JK and not KD. (Cue predictable response from JK that he supports LFC not KD). Although criticising the manager, team, players and even the club at times is acceptable, continuing to support the team through thick and thin is what epitomises being a supporter of Liverpool Football Club. Most of the stuff written on here is negative and can hardly be seen as support. I am not a deluded King Kenny follower. Our performance in the league this year is unacceptable. I just think swapping and changing managers every couple of years is more detrimental to the development of LFC. Consistency is the key to success. Give Kenny one or two more years. If progress is poor the strategy should be addressed further down the line. Realistically, regardless of how much money has been spent, one and a half seasons is a short time in football.

As the great man once said, "If you can't support us when we draw or lose, don't support us when we win."

I don't know about you, but I am in it for the long haul, win, lose or draw. I am patient and am wiling to take the lows with the highs.

Unless genuinely for personal reasons, the timing of the departure is a bit strange and makes a point. If I were the owner, I would axe the person who I believe is destroying shareholders' value. I do not have enough information and can only speculate: could this be the result of the inflated prices paid for the new players?

JK how do you ascertain that Kenny has wasted millions? Kenny has stated he identified the players and then left Damien to sort the rest out. So Damien was responsible for agreeing transfer fees, salary, perks etc, I feel it is this reason why Damien has had to go. All the players Kenny has signed are on paper and from a watching scouts point of view all very good players with ability and good character. The fact that we may have paid inflated transfer fees has nothing to do with Kenny.

Nobody is above blame, From the manager (KD) who sought out the potential transfer targets to the Director of Football (DC) who was responsible in ironing out the wrinkles Ie... Price, wages and length of contract to the owners who sanctioned the deals with the most important part.... THE MONEY!!This is not an attack on Dalglish but more a fact finding mission.Did Comoli pick the team or influence the day to day decisions involving the first team?If we finish 7th or above as the case maybe did KD do a good job?Did the owners interfere in the mechanics of KD being able to do a good job on a day to day basis?

We are neither a force at Anfield, Away from Anfield, on the domestic and certainly not the European front, So i say if we are all to be elated with cup wins then why the fuck did we ever get rid of Houllier never mind Benitez??

Before some idiot not from Liverpool blessed and with oodle's of sarcasm can chime in "Stop and think"..........................Also if you are from Liverpool and are offended by every little pessimistic comment about our great club try taking the blinkers for a second because the view in the real world of Liverpool is slightly different.If no player is above the club then certainly no manager is, regardless of the Legend that is Dalglish!

it's all commoli's fault.he was picking the team,he was deciding on tactics.commoli dropped carroll when he was finding form,same with maxi.commoli decided to persist with henderson all season,he decided not to sub flanagan when he was booked against blackburn and everyone could see he was having a nightmare.poor kenny,i don't know how he worked under such a horrid regime.

Jamie, I certainly did not see this coming. I do not believe it was due to "family reasons". I think he was sacked. That just shows that FSG can be ruthless, and let's remember Comolli was their statistics golden boy so for them to "sack" him show's a lot.

I never though KD would be sacked before the end but this is just encouraging because for many years Liverpool's owners have been light handed.

Let's try finish is a high, blood out some youngsters and hope KD leaves at the end of the season.

Damien had his role, Kenny had his, i'm quite sure at the beginning of the relationship they both stated to each other don't interfere with my job and I won't interfere with yours. Damien was answerable to FSG not Kenny, once the targets are identified why would he keep going back and forth to Kenny? Was Damien too eager to impress and had the attitude of I must deliver at all costs to show that I can do the job. Was he under pressure to ensure he delivered exactly what Kenny wanted? Was he out of his depth and got taken for a ride? There are many unanswered questions so to make a sweeping statement that "Kenny wasted millions" is not based on any real facts but just assumptions.

Was Como was responsible for Meireles leaving?Thats when our season fell apart. If he was good riddance. Some people simply generate negativity - Como at Spurs, Arsenal etc - all struggled with him around.As much as I love KD and want him to succeed, I love LFC more and want the club to win the league with Gerrard. Its overdue and if complete change is needed then so be it. KD will always occupy a special place in the hearts of all older fans.

The Sun reported earlier today that, fruitcake (IMO), Jamie Kanwar has been appointed to boost team moral ahead of next season.A source at the club announced "we've been watching him for a while; he's good, his positive attitude is something we feel could really help boost the team next term especially after such a poor end to this season".

An independent opinion poll was carried out earlier today and the results were clearly in favour of Mr Kanwars appointment.49.99999999% ------------------------- He's a righty numpty50.11111111% ------------------------- His articles are empowering, our boys should read his daily slice before stepping out onto the pitch, that would increase their confidence

When asked about his new position Mr Kanwar said "with me on their side these boys will be unstoppable, apart from the entire squad and Kenny we've the makings of a special team here. I can't wait to get going, the first thing I'll do is put together some really annoying articles about how bad everything is statistically, that should really get the boys going, then I'll think up some pointless opinion polls because opinion polls are what I do best and lets face it everyone loves an opinion poll".When asked his prediction for this weekends game at Wembley he said "if it weren't for the failings of the squad and manager I think we'd be in with a really good chance, but because they're all rubbish we'll probably lose. Statistically we don't stand a chance but the opinion poll I ran earlier said we'll win 17-0. It’s a bit too close to call.

Are you that egotistical that you wouldn't post my thoughts?Its only a bit of fun.

"Millions Wasted" - Even if Kenny had a say in the transfer fee, which I doubt he did, the majority of the millions was spent on Carrol, Henderson and Downing. Considering Carroll and Henderson are English and still very young, it can't be classed as wasted as they both have a very long career ahead of them and it's far too early to be writing them off. Downing is older but he is also English, he is a left footer and he has a good character so he still has a high sell on value if it was decided he was no longer required, but then again it is still very early in his LFC career to be writing him off.Lots of players come good in the 2nd and 3rd seasons at a new club, I still think it's far too early to say money has been wasted on any player.

Would signing Carroll look bad if it was for 15m and not 35m? Would Henderson look like a more decent signing if it was for 12m and not 20m? Kenny may have a part in choosing the players, but it was Comolli who negotiated and agreed to the price! No?

one of the journalists on skys sunday supplement a fortnight ago said that commoli was summoned to talks with the owners.it wasn't widely reported so i don't know the ins and outs of it but there must have been some kind of a fallout.

"He's been terrific. No-one has worked harder at the club over the past year. Every day he is focused on what he wants to accomplish. And his accomplishments thus far - most of them unseen by people outside the club - have been extremely important. He has organised so much so quickly and so well. Everyone on the football side has gained a significant respect for Damien and his efforts on the club's behalf."John Henry November 10th 2011

Downing will be 28 in the summer and if the club were to sell him now, it would be an admission of he hasn't/isn't been good enough, which has a impact on his sell-on value. He simply hasn't got a good sell-on value, unless he has had a season of top performances. Wishful thinking to think he has a 'high sell on value', when he has done bugger all this season.

The club has a budget. The manager and director work towards signing players within that budget. It would be naive to think KK wasn't aware of the potential financial commitment needed to make signings like Carroll and co. If he wasn't, he might as well have put forward Ronaldo, Messi, Kaka, etc.

Of course it can be classed as 'wasted' depending on criteria. I think when spending £50m+on two players, you expect something in the short term as well as the long term. Something truly substantial that says 'yes, you can see why we spent £50m+ on these young players' I think Hendo will turn out to be a solid £10m player in the long run but neither he or Carroll have been good enough in the short term.

FSG stated last summer that finishing outside of the CL qualification places would be a major 'disappoinment'. That illustrates they had faith in these signings as well as the team in general to make a proper fight at least for a CL place. Ergo, they were expecting short term performances as well as long term.

Excellent news. Lets see how long it takes Real, Barca, Bayern, Utd to snap him up...Oh wait they won't because the most successful football clubs have NEVER had a need for this role within its structure. He was supposed to be shrewd in the transfer market spotting talent for a good price but all I see from his rein is NUFC have created a better 1st team from the AC money alone. Says a lot doesn't it? Can see KK moving upstairs in the summer now without anyone losing face and then hopefully we'll bring in an extra special modern day manager.

I believe that kenny labbelled the players and comolli did the business so if kenny said he wanted carrol comolli then went to negotiate and must of thought that I need to get this player at any cost thats y he was sacked goin way beyound the call of duty to get the player that kenny may have wanted

but surely the owners would have to sanction the amount being spent?they hardly just gave commoli 150mil and said spend it on what you want.seems a bit futile to say that he'd get players 'at any cost' especially when you consider that kenny earlier in the season said carroll cost nothing-it was chelsea's money.

Kenny was the person who scouted Suarez after he was brought back in by Rafa so I guess that means that kenny knows who's best for us as the other signings have been down to Comolli... that's his only job.

they are both poor players and shouldn't have been bought for any money.yet kenny says they were his choices so why is commoli being blamed? is it that the board want to show the fans that they are aware of the ill feeling around the club about the players?

Reading when Comolli first came in his job with Kenny before he came manager was to scout for the best British and English talent.Did they fail seeing that Henderson and Carroll were both purchasedand they are were being touted as the best up and coming new young players?The problem with Comolli and Kenny is one wanted to scout the old fashion way of watching players when Comolli wanted to use stats!

Who is calling for instant success? That is such a myth. I imagine most fans just want progress commensurate with the club's expenditure and status. Demanding a top 4 finish is not calling for instant success in the slightest, and if Liverpool were in the top 4 right now, there would be a lot less acrimony.

I don't think the majority were expecting a title challenge but at least a good fight for a CL place. As John Henry said before the season started about not making it into CL qualification places, a 'major disappointment'

It certainly feels like alot of supporters are turning against the manager because we are in a poor position in the league. At the beginning of the season, yes the main target was 4th place and Champions league, but of the 3 competitions on offer we have won one, and doing pretty well in another. I'm just as disappointed as everyone else with our league form, but when you look at the team, we have brought in players and dropped them straight into the first team, and its going to take time for it to come together. I think adding a couple of Cups to the cabinet this year would be a sure sign of improvement. I just think its going to take another season or so before we can compete properly for the top 4 again.

I am not saying that Kenny has been getting the tactics right (far from it) but the players we have need support, despite the expenditure. AC has talked about the pressure from his price tag, which wasnt his doing. If he was still banging them in like he was for Newcastle we'd be saying he was England's future and 35m well spent. DC (or KD!) couldnt have predicted the disastrous form he'd be in at the club. Same for Downing and Henderson, I really thought these were good buys before the start of the season.

If we were scraping top 4 and went out in the early stages of the cups, people would be complaining about that too.

Wenger is, to be fair, a much better manager, who would be in demand at nearly any club in the world if their manager left. While how many clubs would want our manager? Comolli was in before Dalglish, so he knew what was in place before he took on the job. If he couldn't work with that, he could always have turned the job down.

Only a few days ago as well! Giving a conference on being a Director of Football then getting the sack!Think where Comolli laughs at Carroll might have put a nail in his coffin should have kept a straight face seeing he was involved in signing him!

KD should also be sacked..because KD is brainless.visionless.cowardless.tacticaless etc..Sad right now we are the same level with Everton.Sunderland.Wigan etc..even Swansea played better than us day in and day out..Out go Hendo.Adam..whos to blame for Carrol lack of scoring goals..all the blamed should go to KD..Carrol & Suarez should play together every match..by then the combination can be a succesful one..we need a right winger who can beat defender & cross the ball..Sack KD and bring back Rafa..

Is 15 months long enough for KD to get it right in the league? Yes he has sent big money and all those players have not hit the ground running but with so many new faces at once surely he deserves at least another year to turn the league form around. In the meantime we have won the league cup and have another semi at Wembley. Fergie won feck all for 5/6 years and should have been sacked, they stuck with him and look at their reward. Rome wasn't built in a day. My biggest disappointment with despite the league form has been how KD has handled the press. If he can sort this out he deserves more time ( yes more than a Roy hodgson would get) simply for what he has done for the club,. Rightly or wrongly KD deserves mo respect

I just read this from Werner's interview with the official website: "We've got great confidence in Kenny. We feel the team is going to make strides in the future and he enjoys our full support."I really hoped I wouldn't be made to see this. If this really is their position, we're doomed for another season of mediocrity.

A new one is that KK made the comment he did today out of loyalty and out of care for Comolli, as that is KK's best and worse quality apparently. Ergo, regardless of what KK says, KK did not make those signings.

Hey Titi I wonder if you are the real Titi who played for Lfc If you are no doubt you are supporting Comolli. You used to play for Saint Etienne Comolli's town soccer team. Could there be any relation between you two that we do not know And please stop criticising KD. Now it is time to do what Warner said. Support KD all the way. I am sorry for Comolli but he was not the right man for that position. I want a former LFC star like Robbie Fowler fill his position. I salute you though if you are the real Titi Camara. I have great respect for LFC player that has given contribution for the club.

no it doesnt depend on any context. JH said at the beginning of the season he wanted 4th place as a minimum. We havent achieved that but FSG have given overwhelming vote of confidence to Dalglish telling him his job is safe. What FSG and the club has said today means so much more than what was said pre season as it is more relevent. You wont like that because you constantly knock the club and the team you are a detractor.

Hey Tornike. Why fear so much and don't be so against KD. With a few good new signings this summer refreshing the team LFC can be on top. Remember it is not KD's fault for the current situation. With the players he has in his disposal any manager can't do much. Remember he was a player manager when LFC won the championship. But back then he had the right players. So, please continue to support LFC and KD. That' what true fans do.

(1) So you say that with the players he spent ridiculous amount of money on (together with Comolli), he should still be only able to manage mid-table position for the team, scoring 40 goals in 33 games, and losing hopelessly against relegation contenders;(2) In the current context I don't care who he was when we won the championship - football has changed immensely, and there are far more demands from managers nowadays, which he has thoroughly demonstrated he does not have. As I said some time ago, he's just a nice man who thinks he can achieve success just by being nice to the players. That is miles off the reality; And I won't even mention his no-clue post-match comments and laughable judgement of the players;(3) I demand the right people for the job, and support getting rid of the wrong ones. That's what true fans do.

Its rather sad, neanderthal-like and childish the way you target my comments and my character. I have praised the likes of Maxi, Kelly, defended Doni, what KK did last season, praised the club's asap removal of Comolli to make space and time for summer planning, etc, yet I am supposedly a 'detractor', a manure fan. Oh dear, oh dear, you unintentionally amuse me.

If the explicit/implied context was 'what was the objective at the start of the season', than it fits into the context.

Almost anything in the world can fit into a 'context'. So for you to say 'doesnt depend on any context' is rather childishly stupid and funny. I change my mind about inviting you to the 'common sense' brigade in that other thread, I don't think you would do a good job, after your latest rant.

I'll leave to you to try and bully someone else, as I find your attempts rather dense and boring, even though initially it was rather unintentionally funny your attempt as per usual. Cheerio.

For your point #2.. I remember people blamed Rafa for being so strict with players, poor man manager. Look at now, all Carroll's wages are donated to the Pub + Beers. Because KD does not care at all...

Hey FdotM, don't look for a new manager. Any manager can't do much with these players. There is an immediate need for some new good players this summer. As per KD he's only been a year. Give the man a chance to redeem himself and remember you are writing against the greatest footballer LFC ever had. Have some respect body.

Look guys.There were 2 reason that lLfc's league form collapsed and that was the injury to Lucas and Luis's 8 game ban.....The absence of Lucas forced Spearing to be played over and over again. As a short term measure Spearing can muddle through but he has limited value to the team and although not a bad player he's not great at anything.Then Luis went and we could neither create, finish or project the defence sufficiently enough.Confidence went as a result of this and we find ourselves 7th and well out of the picture.People can blame the King or the new players or whoever but before Lucas's injury we were right in the mix for a top 3 finish.........FACT.

I like the comment from Mr Warner saying that we can compete financially with anybody in football........I think we may have underestimated the size of FSG, I can see some top money being spent again this summer.

As a fans, who are you to say which manager you like? sacking comolli is a proof from FSG that they are into the game...if they feel Kenny has lose his plot than he will be axed as well... but right now, kenny is still Liverpool F.C. MANAGER..... back him up. show the old man some respect.

FSG has clearly shown success is imperative and they made statements only when it matters, thus the weight of their comment. We all like KD, I ma big fan of KD. The sporting business has revolved over the years n looking at how the competitions intend to revamp, FSG will take stock regardless.

People talk about the targets that Comolli and Dalglish signed together, but they don't talk about targets that Dalglish identified, but were not signed by Comolli such as Rory Donnelly and Connor Wickham who are now at Swansea and Sunderland respectively. We now know, with the benefit of hindsight, that Connor Wickham was nowhere near good enough for Liverpool (he's on the bench or injured at Sunderland). However, the jury is still out on Rory Donnelly who is playing for Swansea's reserve team. He definitely looked a good player in the youtube videos, which is an indication, but not foolproof. We will have to wait for more details about what exacly caused Comolli to be removed from his post. The wait might be a long one.

Love it when people judge players after 10 months of their Liverpool career, a lot of you will be eating humble pie in another 10 months. Also some will fail that's life, but all that will happen on every failure is that they will highlighted.

Henderson will make it here as will Carroll the rest who knows but to judge them after 10 months stinks of Newcastle ans Chelsea fans!